Tuna Mayo Onigiri (Printable)
Fluffy rice balls filled with creamy tuna mayonnaise, a beloved Japanese convenience food ideal for portable meals and quick snacks.
# What You Need:
→ Rice
01 - 2 cups Japanese short-grain white rice
02 - 2½ cups water
→ Filling
03 - 1 can (5 oz) tuna in water, drained
04 - 3 tablespoons Japanese mayonnaise (such as Kewpie)
05 - 1 teaspoon soy sauce
06 - ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
→ Assembly
07 - ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
08 - 6 small sheets nori, cut into strips
# Steps:
01 - Place the rice in a large bowl and rinse under cold running water, gently swirling with your hands. Repeat this process 3 to 4 times until the water runs nearly clear. Drain thoroughly using a fine-mesh strainer.
02 - Combine the rinsed rice and 2½ cups water in a rice cooker or a heavy-bottomed pot. If using a pot, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to low, cover tightly, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let the rice rest, covered, for 10 minutes to allow the grains to firm up.
03 - While the rice rests, drain the canned tuna well and transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the Japanese mayonnaise, soy sauce, and black pepper. Fold everything together until the mixture is creamy and evenly combined. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
04 - Once the rice is warm but comfortable to handle, lightly wet both hands with cold water. Rub a pinch of salt across your palms — this prevents sticking and lightly seasons the outside of each rice ball.
05 - Scoop roughly ½ cup of warm rice into one hand and flatten it into a shallow disc. Place a generous spoonful of the tuna mayo filling in the center, then gently fold the rice around it. Cup your hands together to press and shape the ball into a triangle or oval, applying firm but gentle pressure to seal the edges without crushing the grains.
06 - Wrap a strip of nori around the base or center of each onigiri, pressing lightly so it adheres to the rice. Serve immediately, or wrap each onigiri tightly in plastic for transport.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- It takes almost no effort but tastes like you spent hours, and the filling ratio is endlessly forgiving if you like a little extra mayo.
- These travel incredibly well, making them the unsung heroes of road trips, picnics, and sad desk lunches that suddenly are not sad anymore.
02 -
- If the rice is too hot when you start shaping, it will burn your hands and make the nori wilt instantly, so patience in those ten minutes of resting truly matters.
- Wetting your hands between every single onigiri is essential because once your palms dry out, the rice sticks ferociously and tears the shape apart.
03 -
- Press firmly enough that the onigiri holds together but not so hard that the rice turns into a dense brick, because the ideal texture should still have distinguishable grains when you bite in.
- Shaping the rice while watching a video or listening to music makes the repetition meditative rather than tedious, and your hands will find their rhythm by the third or fourth one.